Washington State considers bill allowing impounding of cars

[Clodfobble]

Originally Posted by Aliantha

I realize the laws vary from state to state in the US, but over here, if you blow in the bag and you're over the limit, you don't get to get back in your car.

But that's what's so shocking about this law--they don't have to make you, or even let you, blow in the bag. They can pull you over, say, "Yep, he kind of looks drunk to me," and impound your car. Eventually you will be given a breath or blood test down at the station, prove that you are not drunk, and charges will be dropped... but then you will still be responsible for going and paying hundreds of dollars to get your car back.


(This is actually already how things work, except for the impounding-of-the-vehicle part: a cop can arrest you on suspicion of being drunk, and does not actually have to test you until he takes you back to the station, if he doesn't want to. A friend of mine was arrested in just such a fashion years ago, when he hadn't had a drop to drink--but he was being a jerk to the cop, and the cop decided to be a jerk right back.)